On May 8, the Ninth Circuit ruled that a resident of Guam is entitled to get a ruling on whether a particular Guam election law is unconstitutional. Guam law says residents who are descended from someone who was living in Guam in 1898 are entitled to register to vote in a special election on the future political status of Guam. The future election will ask eligible voters if Guam should become independent, join a compact of free association with the United States, or apply for statehood.
The plaintiff is not descended from someone who was living in Guam in 1898, but he wanted to register for that election. The U.S. District Court in Guam had refused to adjudicate the claim, on the basis that the election won’t occur until 70% of the eligible residents sign up, and so far the number of people who have signed up is far below that percentage. But the Ninth Circuit said the plaintiff is entitled to have his case heard, even if it is not known if the election will ever be held. The majority opinion says, “Unequal treatment is an injury even if curing the inequality has no tangible consequences.”
The case now goes back to U.S. District Court. It is Davis v Guam, 13-15199. It had been argued August 27, 2014, so took almost ninth months to be written. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the link.
When is the election going to take place?
No one knows. It can’t happen until enough people register to vote in that election.
The concept of being eligible to vote based upon where one’s grandparents or great-grandparents lived is an interesting – and curious one. All of my ancestors lived in Alabama back in 1898 yet I can’t imagine my being able to vote there!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=F2ac_ZR5ME4&feature=youtu.be
I seem to recall that after the Civil War, several of the southern states passed election laws that required that in order to vote, one’s grandfather had to have been eligible to vote. I think that the 14th and 15th amendments put an end to that practice.
It’s also interesting that, although Spain possessed Guam prior to 1898, giving the descendants of the 1898 residents the option of relinking to Spain will not be offered.
Please expand on this concept. Is the rule that someone had to
live in Guam on some date in the year of 1898 and there issues
can register to vote?
Sincerely, Mark Seidenberg, Chairman, American Independent Party
of California
Mark,
If Guam were independent, and you moved to Guam, you might not be able to vote in Guam elections, since you would be US citizen (alien to Guam).
But under the current territorial status, you likely would be able to vote in territorial elections.
So the question is who should be able to vote in a plebiscite on independence. (1) Only persons who would (or could) become Guam citizens? (2) Persons who are Guam residents.
A similar conundrum has come up with respect to the status of Puerto Rico. Should Puerto Ricans living in the United States be eligible to vote on deciding whether Puerto Rico become independent, since they would be potential Puerto Rican citizens. But on the other hand, if Puerto Rico were to apply for statehood, the residents of the island would formulate the state constitution. After statehood, Puerto Rican citizenship would be derivative of their United States citizenship.
Put all of the U.S.A. colonies in the Pacific Ocean into the Hawaii regime.